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At first glance, the Sony SVR-HDT1000 may appear rather unprepossessing. It’s a Freeview HD digital recorder which bucks the trend for ubiquitous Smart-ness and has no integrated Blu-ray player or fancy multi-platform functionality. It does, however, make a virtue of simplicity. Those looking for a no-nonsense …

Geek users?

LOL. Some (highly technical and computer literate) people work for a living, and can't be dicking about with patching their TVs when they get home. Or just want something the kids or (computer illiterate) wife can switch on from standby. This box is pretty good at that (I have the 500Mb version). It could do with DNLA or access to the same services that the Sony BD has, but it does the job it does very well.

God I hate people who describe themselves as geeks just because they can load Ubuntu onto a PC and call it a PVR.

If you just want a decent Freeview HD PVR and you've already got all the other bits, like an Internet-enabled Blu-Ray player, HD TV/projector, surround, etc. then this is actually not a bad product. You don't actually want all the extra IPTV cruft, BR player, etc.

Are they out of their cost-minds?

Exactly what I thought

I can only assume that Sony expect people to believe they'd get better results from something with the word Sony written on it than from something with the word Humax written on it. Which I doubt is true nowadays.

Still, as an avowed cheapskate (spend more than £600 on a TV? Are you kidding?) I'm not exactly the target market.

Sony vs Humax

"£349 are SONY insane? For 1/2 that I can get an entire Freesat setup, and HUMAX box"

Can you share the source? Humax Freesat PVR 1TB currently listed as £319 on their site so the Sony "list" price is less than 10% more. I'd pay that for a slightly better UI and remote (the Humax remote is terrible).

"I noted no recording-induced artefacts"

Nor will there be on any sane Freeview recorder, at least by default. Some have the option to recompress for archival, but AFAIK all pukka Freeview hard-disk recorders store the digital stream directly and replay it "as is".

PS3 PVR ?

PS3

Whilst I admit that, on a pure cost basis, the PS3 wins hands down, it isn't exactly living room friendly, is it? It makes one hell of a din and pumps out more heat than a tumble dryer. But it does make you wonder why this costs £350 when the PS3 is £200 cheaper with more expensive components.

small difference

The PS3 setup isn't freeview HD. Unless they finally got around to making a mark 2 playTV anyway. It's anice setup - the interface is way ahead of most PVRs - but without DVB-T2 decoding, it's old tech in the UK.

Actually locked recordings are mandatory for Freeview HD

"Archive to an external disk, but locked to the box? That's understandable for pay-TV subscription channels, but unacceptable for Freeview."

It is mandatory for any Freeview HD product to apply copy controls as signalled at least to the HD content. The simple way of doing this that many boxes choose is to encrypt the content with a device specific key. Often they do this with an encrypted partition or taking over the whole disc but they could do it on a file basis. I think many consumers would find it very confusing being able to do some content but not others and the rules aren't completely simple anyway.

"31watts, with an external wallwart PSU? More hot clunky clutter behind the TV."

Also 31W isn't that much for a dual DVB-T2 tuner plus HD decode plus writing two HD streams to disc plus reading one stream from disc which will be the only time that the maximum power is taken. I for one would prefer the wall wart generating the heat behind the TV than it being internal and making the cabinet hotter.

"No DVD or Blu-ray player, no video media playback from USB?."

They have those products if you want them but this isn't it.

"And they want £350? I'l pass."

The price does seem a high at £350 but a quick Google shows that Richer Sounds are selling it at £280 although I would go for the £220 500GB model.

Disclaimer: Ex-Sony Product Planner, didn't work directly on these products but know people who did.

>It is mandatory for any Freeview HD product to apply copy controls as signalled at least to the HD content.

The key phrase there is "as signalled" The BBC asked permission to do it, and Ofcom allowed that, but if the broadcaster doesn't put DRM on the broadcast there is no requirement that the PVR should encrypt the content. If this PVR encrypts everything then it's just taking the lazy way out.

Does your position as "Ex-Sony Product Planner" allow you to respond to my first question, about who makes this for Sony?

Incidentally I'm not anti-Sony, I have an RDR-HX910 HDD-DVD box linked to a Sony TV and am happy with both. In terms of features and connectivity the 910 design is far superior, at least for SD viewing.

Sony is a huge organisation with hundreds (thousands?) of products globally. There is room for great, good and sometimes even bad products (and even policies) in different parts of the organisation. They fundamentally don't have the tight control of Apple to ensure every product is at least good although I believe that this one is.

Some of the old Bridgend people are still in Sony in Basingstoke and while there is no longer much development and design work done by that team they specification and testing work. The Basingstoke team certainly contributed to the development of the Freeview + HD box.

I really can't remember (and even if I could I probably shouldn't say) who is the partner for the Sony Freeview + HD box although I'm sure it wasn't Beko. I'm also not completely clear that the exact manufacturer is critical. Whoever makes it is Sony's responsibility to ensure does it to the requirements of the brand and that it is of good quality before it hits the shelves and if it does't meet a reasonable standard it should be returned through the retailer.

The old PVR to which you referred was by all accounts a very poor product and should not have been allowed out of the door. I seem to recall that it appeared in Basingstoke as essentially a finished product for testing without earlier input and it wasn't regarded as very impressive. This Freeview+ HD product is I believe much more solid and well built in many ways and was definitely developed with Basingstoke input.

Regarding your non-DSO compliant TV, I presume that you understand that it met the agreed specification for UK Digital Terrestrial TV and it was a later decision by the DtG that was largely driven by the broadcasters to change the specification and the broadcast modes in a way that it was known would prevent early digital products from working.

Humax are a good brand with some pretty good products. My Father has had a few (single tuner, dual tuner and most recently HD before the Sony was available) although there have been times when there have been prolonged significant software problems so the experience hasn't been entirely perfect but I am not currently aware of any significant outstanding issues that haven't been fixed. I certainly haven't sat down for a side by side comparison with the Sony.

RE : Joseph Lord10:49 GMT

Regarding your non-DSO compliant TV, I presume that you understand that it met the agreed specification for UK Digital Terrestrial TV and it was a later decision by the DtG that was largely driven by the broadcasters to change the specification and the broadcast modes in a way that it was known would prevent early digital products from working.

I sold it when the tube started to go dull now have a W series LCD.

The old PVR to which you referred was by all accounts a very poor product and should not have been allowed out of the door. I seem to recall that it appeared in Basingstoke as essentially a finished product for testing without earlier input and it wasn't regarded as very impressive.

That was the Beko job, it to be honest was a joke.

Some of the old Bridgend people are still in Sony in Basingstoke and while there is no longer much development and design work done by that team they specification and testing work. The Basingstoke team certainly contributed to the development of the Freeview + HD box.

Those early IDTVs were VERY WELL rated and were the best tuners of the early DTTV days, knowing the same team is behind the new PVR is more important than I think Sony realise.

A lot of us who like Sony goods do not buy because of the badge, but because of the quality. I thought the Wega tube was fantastic, my old Sony 950 was the best domestic 1/2" tape product in the UK, my old Sony portable VCR still works, went with it because Beta was better than Vhs. My LCD current TV was one of best at the time.

But I went Pioneer for DVD player no 2 as they do both SACD and DVD-Audio.

As to Sony badged, well I was given a Sony Vhs recorder and it is the worst VCR in my collection, only used it to transfer to PC, actually it is a bit shoddy, also it was not much newer than my best VCR the SLHF950. Want to see cheap and well made - look at the early Sanyo VCRs - as your format partners, they did some great decks, my VTCM40 HiFi still works!

Suffice to say I have had quite a bit of Sony stuff but you had to work at it.